This invention relates to an information processing method and apparatus, a recording medium and a program, and more particularly to an information processing method and apparatus, a recording medium and a program in which the communication balance between a plurality of nodes can be controlled optimally.
Various methods are known that a plurality of users communicate with each other, and one of such methods uses a virtual space. According to the method, a user can access a server through a network and use a common virtual space provided by the server to communicate with other users on the real-time basis. In the virtual space, the user sets the other self thereof called avatar such that such users chat with each other through the respective avatars.
For example, Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2001-160154 discloses a display apparatus which displays avatars where a plurality of users share a virtual space such that, when one of the users moves, a corresponding avatar moves in response to position information, direction information, and so forth of the user. Meanwhile, Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2001-154966 discloses a system in which an avatar in a virtual space uses a virtual portable telephone set to transmit or receive a message to or from another avatar who is in an another virtual space or another user who is in an actual space.
Incidentally, not only a communication system in related art that such a virtual space as described above is used to perform communication with a plurality of nodes but also another communication system in related art that an actual space is used for communication with a plurality of nodes have a problem in that, as the number of nodes used for communication increases, simultaneous establishment of circuits between a plurality of nodes becomes difficult from a limitation to communication channels.
As a countermeasure for the problem, methods are available that the communication balance is controlled by limiting those nodes from which information can be transmitted within a certain time zone through the same communication network. As one of such methods, for example, a PTT (Push to Talk) controlling method for controlling communication with a plurality of transceiver terminals is available.
Also another method is available that circuits between a plurality of nodes are established simultaneously like sound chat software by which a VoIP (Voice over IP) function or the like is used to perform communication with a plurality of persons through a network.